All right, if you haven’t seen the new Star Trek movie, you might as well click off this now because I am going to go over some major spoiler stuff.

One of the reasons the reboot of the Star Trek series has been so successful is these films stand on their own for their pure entertainment value. This is good because it allows a whole new audience to fall in love with the characters and their space adventures.

But, this is a nerd blog, not a fun summer movie blog, so here is what I liked and disliked about Star Trek Into Darkness, mostly revolving around the character of Khan.

Khan Noonien Singh is one of the best villains of all-time — in my and many other’s opinion — so when word leaked he would be the bad guy in the latest installment of the rebooted series, I was pretty pumped. “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan,” which I base my love of the character off of more than the original series episode “Space Seed (S1, Ep 22),” was an epic film. Captain Kirk, who didn’t fear death or believe in the no win scenario, faced the one person who could bring him to his knees. But, you know this, so moving on.

While I really did enjoy Into Darkness, I was left feeling kind of cheated with major points made in Wrath of Khan that could have easily been a part of the film. Like what, you ask? Well, how about Khan’s wife. Seriously, once he is captured in the latest film and revels who he is, it would have made more sense for him to shed a tear for his frozen wife, rather than his crew… Right? I mean, how many times was she mentioned in Wrath of Khan? Her death due to the adverse conditions of Ceti Alpha V was a point Ricardo Montalbán really hammed home in the 1982 film when he spoke about revenge on Kirk.

Benedict Cumberbatch did an outstanding job with the role and really made it his own, but part of the fun of Montalbán’s version was how pompous the character was in that he was always reminding others of his “superior intellect.” I got the impression Cumberbatch was physically strong and cunning, but not pompous or proud — as in he is a superman man, better than all other men. Other than the love of his crew, the extinction of all who are weaker than him should have been a major driving force for the character, which I never really felt. It almost seemed like he was just bitter Robocop — Peter Weller — used him.

Again, I really enjoyed Cumberbatch’s character, but what happened with Khan and his crew in the end? I thought for sure they would be transported onto a planet… perhaps one where life could be sustained… But, no. Nothing. In fact, I couldn’t help but think of the ending of “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” but now Kirk is asking some Star Fleet admiral where the tubes are, only be be told they are “someplace safe” to be studied by “top men.”

And Finally, it was way, way, way too soon to “kill off” a character, especially when everyone in the theater knew he wasn’t dead. I am of course talking about the reverse timeline death of Kirk rather than Spock to save “the many.” Spock’s sacrifice was so significant in Wrath of Khan because he really died. That was it. True, he did do the mind-meld with McCoy before going into the chamber, bu you weren’t sure where all that was going. And, what’s more, if you weren’t a Trekkie — just an average fan — you really thought Spock died. With Into Darkness, no one was fooled, and what’s more the tribble being shoehorned in just for that Khan/blood reason was a little too much, especially since you already set up the regenerative effects his blood could have on an average person in the beginning of the film with the dying girl.

Oh, oh, and Spock screaming “KHAAAAANNNNN!” …No. No, thank you, Zachary. It isn’t that I didn’t believe his rage. It is that Shatner was just so awful/wonderful when he screamed the name, it became an instant classic Shatner-esque stamp on overacting.

On a side note, what the h*@$ was that trailer for “Elysium” all about?! Never mind. We’ll leave that for another day.

OK, I am done. Again, the film is fantastic, but when you take the best villain for what most consider to be the the best film in the original series, some ideas, themes, and, well, beloved wives, have got to be a part of the bigger picture.

Some remarks about your Into Darkness comments. First of all, the reason Khan’s wife was not mentioned is because she was a member of Starfleet, introduced in “Space Seed”. Marla McGiver was a member of the Enterprise crew and would likely have not met Khan in this alternate timeline. But I agree with you that she should still have been introduced. I also agree with you about the weak inclusion of Kirk’s death. It was obvious where they were going, and it ultimately lampooned the original arc, with Spock’s death and resurrection. I kept hoping that Kirk would stay dead into the next movie, and that Khan would prove himself an ally, until, in another sequel, he revealed his true villainous nature. Such a cliffhanger would have ensured ravenous zeal from many of us fans. Furthermore, I thought the Kirk-Spock death scene was so poorly done, so mechanical, that it felt like high school kids re-enacting scenes from their favorite film. It had none of the emotional punch of the original death scene, and when Quinto screamed “Khannn!” at the end, it rendered the entire moment cartoonish and mocked the original. Though much of Into Darkness was very well done (particularly the first half), their choice to religiously parrot “Wrath of Khan” was ill-conceived. Thanks for your blog.

I thought I’d be clever and comment on something but you kind of hit everything I was thinking while watching the film today. I suppose if I were to take issue with anything, it’s your seemingly unbending allegiance to Montalban’s version while I felt Cumberbatch made Kahn his own; which is a respectable artist’s choice. Different, sure, but not bad. I mean, it’s a fun movie, but I also believe it missed some home runs. But what do I know? I’m not in film. Maybe there’s a better reason the Bad Robot people have for doing things the way they did that’s above me?

Man, good thoughts, all. You know, part of me wanted desperately to believe in this alternate arc as a vehicle for elevating the conflicted emotional battle in Spock, and I think it served to do that a little, but in the end it did come off as a sophomoric and ill-considered reversal of the roles that just cheapened the whole storyline. I grinned when Quinto yowled, but it was the grin of an ironic chuckle, not of excitement dawning.

On the wife, you make an excellent point, but I think Ryan’s spot-on when he says that missing element hurt the overall presentation of the character. Cumberbatch definitely made the character his own as Gordon Couch mentions above, and I really like a lot about his Khan. But I think that the pomposity and bloviation of Montalbán served the goal of inflating the character on the screen and elevating the level of anger he aroused in the viewer. And frankly, like Charles Emerson Winchester III, I just love to hate a pompous nincompoop (and I play one IRL sometimes!).

Thanks for your thoughts! I realize Khan’s wife was introduced back in the original series and adding that into this movie would have made for too much going on. However, I think if his wife had been a part of the frozen crew from the beginning in this film, his love for her would have made the audience feel for his character more. His shedding a tear would have made sense in that case. Also, Khan’s love for his wife would have worked nicely alongside the Kirk/Marcus love story, which was barley touched on.

Thanks for your thoughts! I realize Khan’s wife was introduced back in the original series and adding that into this movie would have made for too much drag. However, I think if his wife had been a part of the frozen crew from the beginning in this film, his love for her would have made the audience feel for his character’s motivations on a deeper level. His shedding a tear would have made infinitely more sense in that case. Also, Khan’s love for his wife would have worked nicely alongside the Kirk/Marcus love story, which was barley touched on.

Thanks for your thoughts. It is only my guess, but I figure the studio knows it will make more money if it appeals to more people, so they make it as simple to follow as possible. While this means more people will see it and enjoy it, us fans are well aware how watered down these reboots are.

Excellent points, all. Two small things I think would’ve added a warm tip-of-the-hat for longtime fans….. the cryo-pods should’ve been shown being loaded onto a cargo vessel called the Botany Bay… and a great post-credits clip would’ve been a shot of the tribble in the medical bay giving birth to one more tribble before fading out.
A fairly good movie overall.

For
my part, I liked it enough that I would see it again in theaters, but
agree that it soft-pedaled when it should have pumped and was slavish
when it should have been iron-fisted. One of the reasons the reboot was
so brilliant is that it turned the alternate universe logic against the
canonical story and character arcs and opened up a world of
possibilities. But by recycling so much of the original TV and film
series material “Into Darkness” fundamentally negates that sense of possibility and
makes it almost seem like parody.

That said, I likes to watch
stuff get blowed up, so the lens flare and mechanical meatiness of “Into
Darkness” was all candy to me, regardless of the uninspired
plot (and, let’s face it, pretty horrendous, pandering dialogue).

For my part, I liked it enough that I would see it again in theaters, but agree that it soft-pedaled when it should have pumped and was slavish when it should have been iron-fisted. One of the reasons the reboot was so brilliant is that it turned the alternate universe logic against the canonical story and character arcs and opened up a world of possibilities. But by recycling so much of the original TV and film series material, “Into Darkness” fundamentally negates that sense of possibility and makes it almost seem like parody.

That said, I too likes to watch stuff get blowed up, so the lens flare and mechanical meatiness of “Into Darkness” was all candy to me, regardless of the uninspired plot (and, let’s face it, pretty horrendous, pandering dialogue and laughably underwritten female parts).

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Joe Nguyen is the online prep sports editor for The Denver Post. He had prior worked with the Post's YourHub section, covering Adams County and Aurora. His obsessions have ranged from comics books and...

A nerd who is intrigued by all things extraordinary and otherworldly. When he’s not working, he can be found in a small room, playing D&D, pretending to be a three-foot gnome who charges dragons while mounted on a fox.